Arts, Leisure and Sports
PEORIA, IL. – The Rail Yard Dawgs (4-1) scored on their first possession of the night and never looked back, eliminating the top-seeded Peoria Rivermen (3-2) in a 5-3 victory at Carver Arena on Sunday evening. Nick DeVito and Gehrett Sargis each scored twice for Roanoke, Josh Nenadal opened the scoring just 15 seconds into the game, and Austyn Roudebush saved 37-of-40 shots that he faced.
Roanoke will have to await the conclusion of the Birmingham versus Huntsville series to determine its opponent in the President’s Cup Finals. Single-game tickets and parking passes for Games 3 and 4 of the Finals will go on sale Monday, April 24 at 10:00 A.M. both online and at the Berglund Center box office.
The first period started with a bang for the Dawgs, as Nenadal tipped in a long-range shot by C.J. Valerian to give Roanoke a 1-0 lead just 15 seconds into the action. At 12:39, the Dawgs doubled up, as Sargis tucked home a rebound chance from a Nenadal shot to make it 2-0. Exactly three minutes later, Sargis tucked the puck off of the back of Peoria goalie Jack Berry’s pad to put the Dawgs up by three, and forcing Berry to the bench in favor of Eric Levine. Roanoke ended the period on a 5-on-3 penalty kill, but took the three-goal cushion into the first intermission.
Roanoke killed off the 5-on-3 penalty to start the second period, then had to kill off another Peoria power play near the halfway mark of the action. Finally, on Peoria’s 29th shot of the evening, the Rivermen found their opening goal as Austin Wisely finished off a rebound from a 2-on-1 chance created by J.M. Piotrowski at 14:11. The momentum was short-lived for the hosts, as DeVito slapped home an amazing centering pass by Brendan Pepe just 24 seconds later to put Roanoke back in front 4-1. A five-minute major for boarding against Roanoke’s John Stampohar at 16:42 put the Dawgs back on the kill, and Nenadal joined him with 0.1 seconds left in the period on a tripping minor. The Dawgs would once again start the final frame on a 5-on-3 penalty kill after being outshot 20-3 in the second period by the Rivermen.
The third period saw the Rivermen finally capitalize on a power play, as Alec Baer made it a 4-2 game just 20 seconds after the action resumed. Roanoke kept holding on for dear life, but its advantage was trimmed to just one when Nick Neville’s blue-line shot at 15:37 went in for Peoria to make it a 4-3 game. The Dawgs kept digging in the final minutes, and DeVito made an empty-netter from his own zone with 26 seconds remaining to put Roanoke back into the President’s Cup Finals for the second consecutive season, avenging its 2022 Finals loss to the Rivermen by winning the series two games-to-one.
Peoria’s Jack Berry saved 9-of-12 shots in the game before he was relieved for Eric Levine, who stopped 7-of-8 shots faced. The Dawgs went 0-for-2 on the power play, while the Rivermen were 1-for-5 on their power play chances.
The President’s Cup Finals will be a best-of-five series, with Roanoke set to host Game Three and also Game Four, if necessary. Game Three will take place on Monday, May 1 at 7:05 P.M. EST, and Game Four, if necessary, will be on Tuesday, May 2 at the same time at Berglund Center. Games One, Two, and Five (if necessary) will be played on the road.
If Game Four is not necessary, tickets and parking passes will be refunded automatically to your original form of payment. If you purchased a Playoff Package, please use Game D for Game Three and Game E for Game Four. Season long parking passes and Club 611 passes will be accepted at both of these games. Bud Light Watch Parties for away games will be announced at a later date. Roanoke’s 2023 President’s Cup Playoffs run is sponsored by Haley Toyota of Roanoke.
We understand that many of you are disappointed, and now that we know all of our runners are safe, our next priority is to take care of each of your questions as quickly and best as we can. Please bare with us as we work to address you all.
So what’s next?
If you had not finished before the race was cancelled:
-Your results or timing will not be posted on RunSignUp. But you will be able to see your split times will be posted on jonesracingcompany.com. Everyone who finished ahead of the cancellation will be posted to RunSignUp.
-The Virtual will be extended to May 1st and those who would like an “official” finish can transfer to the Virtual at no cost. We will follow this email with instructions on how to transfer to the virtual. You will be able to submit your results between now and May 1st. You may run your virtual race anywhere. If you completed the race at your own risk today, we will honor your watch times for that submission. Medals will be available for local pick up or shipping. Full details about this option will come soon.
-If you are attempting the Full GOAT, please be sure to attend the Slow K tomorrow. You will also be able to submit final result as a virtual race by May 1st, however it must be completed on the official Blue Ridge Marathon course.
If you did finish before the race was cancelled and think you won:
The Anthem Star 10K Awards Ceremony has been rescheduled to tomorrow at 11am at River’s Edge Park. This will take place just after the Slow K. We will also award the 1st overall male finisher in the Foot Levelers Half Marathon. There will be no other age group or overall awards for this year.
Friday, April 21, Salem, Va – The Roanoke College Board of Trustees voted Thursday to support a proposal by President Frank Shushok Jr. to reinstate football as a varsity sport and add varsity cheerleading and marching band co-curricular programs. The proposal was approved on the condition that start-up funding of $1.2 million is in place by June 1. Roanoke College has not had a football team since 1942, when the sport was discontinued because of the constraints of World War II.
Shushok’s proposal upgrades an existing co-curricular cheerleading program to varsity level, creates a co-curricular marching band program, restores varsity football and commits to ongoing academic excellence at Roanoke College. Shushok, who joined Roanoke as its 12th president in July 2022, initiated a feasibility study shortly after his arrival to evaluate the possibility of reinstating football and adding the new programs. The study showed that football, cheerleading and a marching band would increase enrollment and student diversity, elevate campus spirit, attract more visitors to campus and build stronger bonds with the local community.
“Over the academic year, I have had many individual conversations with students, faculty and staff about the potential addition of a football team and associated programs,” Shushok said. “Cultivating a successful football program, along with a marching band and competitive cheer, can breathe life into a college campus, bringing together our faculty, staff, students, alumni and the community in a unified spirit of passion and pride.”
The three new programs will launch only if the needed start-up investment of $1.2 million is secured. Roanoke College has set a June 1 deadline to raise the initial investment. If philanthropic support is secured by the deadline, Roanoke will begin recruiting in 2023 with the goal of fielding a team for a partial season in fall 2024. If the funding is not obtained by June 1, the timeline will be adjusted.
The current plan recommends minimizing costs with a conservative investment and upgrading existing underutilized facilities. Alumni Field would be used for practice and the Bast Center would be upgraded to accommodate locker rooms, training facilities, offices and a weight room. Salem Stadium, a 7,157-seat facility near Roanoke College’s Elizabeth Campus, would be the site of the games. Salem Stadium is already the home of Salem High School’s Spartans, and it hosted the NCAA Division III Football Championship, the Amos Alonzo Stagg Bowl, for many years.
After a lengthy break from offering a football program at Roanoke College, Shushok said, “now is the time to rekindle that spark into a flame that will add new life to our campus, enable us to invigorate recruitment and inspire alumni support.
After a new label on their accounts had several major news outlets leaving Twitter, one Virginia Tech Professor takes a look at the importance of the site to modern-day journalism. WFIR’s Emma Thomas has details:
The Roanoke Symphony Orchestra’s “Painted Violins” fundraiser is also designed to draw awareness to youth music education programs in local schools. Local artists displayed their styles while painting a handful of violins that will be raffled off. The money raised will support youth string programs. Raffle tickets for the painted violins can be ordered on the Roanoke Symphony Orchestra website there’s also a meet and greet Happy Hour with the artists at Hotel Roanoke next Thursday from 5:30 to 7:30pm. RSO executive director David Crane was live in studio this morning with Community & Education Director Hannah Cox. Hear the complete conversation about the Painted Violins initiative below; watch it on Facebook.
At the end of the day Friday, a Roanoke College board meeting will be one of several factors determining if the Maroons will once again field a football team. WFIR’s Ian Price has that story.
Posted on 4/13/23 — Roanoke College President Frank Shushok sent out an email recently informing students and staff that the school is interested in starting a football program if they can raise the money. Justin Ditmore talked about the news yesterday while filling in on Greg Robert’s Live here on WFIR. According to Ditmore, the letter also details plans to create a marching band and establish a competitive cheer squad.
Kim Davidson (right)
The Roanoke Valley Children’s Choir presents its 36th annual Spring Concert this Saturday at Church of the Holy Spirit in southwest Roanoke County, at 7pm. Founding director Kim Davidson says its also an important fundraiser for the Choir. She sat down yesterday with WFIR’s Gene Marrano to talk about the choir, and here is a “Longer Listen,” segment:
Photo: Flyer for RFW 2023 Finale
Roanoke’s Fashion Week is returning for its fourth year — now with an all new line-up of events. WFIR’s Emma Thomas has details: